E3: NINTENDO (Revolution and more)

[lendelin]

Complete and total speculation from someone (not me.. I don't have a quote source though), but VERY interesting nonetheless:

Revolution's secret has already been given away by Reggie, and putting together a few clues from Iwata reveals exactly what the 'Revolution' is:

1. Iwata emphasizes 'low power' consumption.
2. Revolution is 'all wireless'
3. Revolution is small
4. Revolution is designed to be cost-efficient
4. Squeenix prez. says that Nintendo has come up with an architecture that is 'not quite a portable, not quite a console, but the best of both worlds'.... or something like that.
5. Reggie says that the Revolution controller would give away what the console is all about....

What these clues indicate is that Revolution is a console/portable hybrid, the Rev. controller will be essentially a PSP level portable which has all its processing chipset in the revolution console itself, essentially a controller with a high quality screen. When you are not playing the rev. at home, you just pack it in your backpack or something and head out.

The revolution will transmit video data to its controller screen wirelessly and you will be able to play GC, N64, SNES, NES and Rev. games on the go. Since the rev. will be small and in your backpack no one will be able to tell that you are using a console to play games on the go. The low power consumption will probably mean that the rev. will be running on some sort of battery. And if you're in a hotspot you can play GC quality or better games online on the go.

Essentially with this scenerio Nintendo does not have to shrink down the GC chipset to fit into a portable, they get to leverage their portable experience and you get a console that you can play at home or outside. If you have friends coming over you probably won't even need a TV, as long as you both have your controllers the Rev. console will transmit to the screens of both. This may be a reason that Nintendo is aiming to make the console as cheap as possible, since a large part of the cost is going into controller manufacturing, and one will probably be packed in with each Revolution console.

Who wrote that? I completely agree, and I suspected the same even before E3. The more than sparse information about the Rev. by N hints at this direction.

The Rev won't be a traditional console, but in all likelihood a hybrid console/portable sytem. That is why N for a year now emphasizes lower power, not a direct competitor to the two new consoles, that gamers want shorter, simpler games, and Iwata some time ago mentioned that lesiure time activities of gamers changed because of the Internet. The target of "hardcore gamers" as well as the extreme "maintsream" gamers, the non-players, the cell-phone gamers, fit into the hybrid speculation as well.

When I saw E3, the emphasis on how small the new system will be; more powerful than the GC but nevertheless not as powerful as the two new consoles by Sony and MS, it fit into my hybrid speculation. What really convinced me was the emphasis on downloading older games. (Nes Tetris, old platformers; is there a better way to get high-quality games surpassing the cell phone games?)

Ns marketing strategy and its economic situation makes this scenario the most likely one:

N, already reduced in the console business to a niche market share, will remain a foothold in the console industry as a niche company; they will be able to produce still decent games for their system. (inferior ones graphiocally and from a power point of view, lacking third-party support of triple A titles, but good enough for their franchises)

But the real purpose of this strategy is to remain the leader in the handheld business endangered by Sony: the Rev. as a handheld system by sheer processing power and with its gamelibrary (downloadable content) will blow the PSP away. This way, N focuses on the branch of the industry where they have the biggest strenghts and something to defend.

It all makes sense even if you think about the rising development costs of game development.

I think they will provide even as a standard or a peripheral an LCD screen; Suddenly you have a small portable system with great game content, wi-fi and able to play DVDs.

This would be a smart business decision by N. However, it is not the best of two worlds. N accepts that they lost the console reace by intentionally reducing themselves to a niche company (which I said already more than six months ago), and they will have a great starting position as the leader in the handheld business.

The controllers in all likelihood will follow a dual route: something 'new' (we know the speculations) plus the control pad/analog control to play the older games. The 'new" control can be marketed within N image of the 'innovative' company by not giving up analog control for their established franchises.

The marketing, however, won't be easy: N has to make sure that its most devoted fanbase won't be disappointed. The most faithful believers are ready to nail you on the cross when they feel betrayed; they can be your worst enemy; additionally, the less-power-, garphics-aren't-everything-emphasis on the console side will contradict the -more-power emphasis on the handheld side; but nothing which can be overcome by euphemistic marketing talk. The marketing won't be as starightforward and easy as for the PS3 and 360.

N has to walk a very thin line the next year by gradual PR and leaks to prepare gamers (its fanbase and the laid back ones) for a less powerful console, a non-traditional console. They can't do that at once: you noticed that Iwata already tried at E3. On the one hand he used the decades old PR talk of being wowed by the graphics of the new system, on the other hand he tried to sell a less powerful system by saying it will be four times more powerful than the GC. Immediately, the issue of a less powerful system came up, the statement was 'corrected' (damage control), the euphemistic emphasis on something positive was replaced by a mere contradiction, criticism, and uncertainty.

Lets assume the statements by "Reggie" are true (haven't read them, but they fit exactly what I suspected), the reason why he came out so early with them is the controversy about Iwatas remark. They probably planned to leak this information much later and more gradually, but the uncertainty and question marks sparked by the statement are dangerous for such a difficult marketing startegy that lies before N. Speculations gone wild are more dangerous than effective for a system as ambigious as the Revolution; high expectations result easily in disappointment faced with the reality of a system designed to be a hybrid.

To say good-bye as a serious contender in the console business is a smart decision by N, and I hope the new system will survive within the console industry as a niche system. There is a danger, however, that both sides are alienated: the console gamers will be disappointed, and the portable gamers (including the casual ones) might not accept this system as a portable system.

I still think that this route is the best N could choose. It makes all the economic sense in the world, and the PSP will get a very serious contender. (I always regarded the DS as a transitional system, a quick counteract to the PSP)

[CartCollector]

What these clues indicate is that Revolution is a console/portable hybrid, the Rev. controller will be essentially a PSP level portable which has all its processing chipset in the revolution console itself, essentially a controller with a high quality screen. When you are not playing the rev. at home, you just pack it in your backpack or something and head out.

The revolution will transmit video data to its controller screen wirelessly and you will be able to play GC, N64, SNES, NES and Rev. games on the go. Since the rev. will be small and in your backpack no one will be able to tell that you are using a console to play games on the go. The low power consumption will probably mean that the rev. will be running on some sort of battery. And if you're in a hotspot you can play GC quality or better games online on the go.

Essentially with this scenerio Nintendo does not have to shrink down the GC chipset to fit into a portable, they get to leverage their portable experience and you get a console that you can play at home or outside. If you have friends coming over you probably won't even need a TV, as long as you both have your controllers the Rev. console will transmit to the screens of both. This may be a reason that Nintendo is aiming to make the console as cheap as possible, since a large part of the cost is going into controller manufacturing, and one will probably be packed in with each Revolution console.

Remember myt mention of how the Rev would look a while back, and everyone cried "Foul?" This sounds exactly like it.

[Kilik Kurosawa]

What these clues indicate is that Revolution is a console/portable hybrid, the Rev. controller will be essentially a PSP level portable which has all its processing chipset in the revolution console itself, essentially a controller with a high quality screen. When you are not playing the rev. at home, you just pack it in your backpack or something and head out.

The revolution will transmit video data to its controller screen wirelessly and you will be able to play GC, N64, SNES, NES and Rev. games on the go. Since the rev. will be small and in your backpack no one will be able to tell that you are using a console to play games on the go. The low power consumption will probably mean that the rev. will be running on some sort of battery. And if you're in a hotspot you can play GC quality or better games online on the go.

Essentially with this scenerio Nintendo does not have to shrink down the GC chipset to fit into a portable, they get to leverage their portable experience and you get a console that you can play at home or outside. If you have friends coming over you probably won't even need a TV, as long as you both have your controllers the Rev. console will transmit to the screens of both. This may be a reason that Nintendo is aiming to make the console as cheap as possible, since a large part of the cost is going into controller manufacturing, and one will probably be packed in with each Revolution console.

Remember myt mention of how the Rev would look a while back, and everyone cried "Foul?" This sounds exactly like it.

no please refresh our memories



so does this new speculation mean we have to carry this "console" around with us? that would be a pain. and what ever happened to the the GBA2 they didn't even talk about that! also where does the "third pillar" scheme fit into all of this???

[downfall]

In an interview with Reggie on G4, he had this to say about the Revolution's controller:

". . . the ability to download and play the best NES games, SNES games, N64 games, in addition to Revolution gagmes and Gamecube games. If you put those controllers all lined up together, they're all very different. So think about "What kind of device is going to allow you to play all those different types of games?"

[CartCollector]

Back on Page 7 I posted something (and edited it). Right below it is a nice little comment from Grayrobertos.

Thank goodness I saved it in Word. Here are some highlights (the original was REALLY long):

Around the console's edges was a black band at the top and bottom, with a silver band in between them. The picture I saw had the stick-in CD drive. I don't know the technical term for it, but you stick the disc in a slot and have to press a button to get it out. It's at the center-right on the front of the console. (To visualize, the front here is the long side of the 3 DVD cases.) A disc was half-in while a game was still playing, which is why I think it is a mock-up. On the left side was something that I couldn't really identify. A little grey thing stuck out, and next to it was a button. The side of it looked as if it was chopped at a 45-degree angle. I think this is the memory card. The button is probably there to eject it, so you don't carelessly yank it out. Another thing that should be mentioned is that the console flipped open...
When you open the console, you will find that there is a SCREEN on the top. Why would there be a screen? Well, below it is a replica of a GameCube controller. What does this mean? The Revolution might be both a console and a portable! Much like the PSOne, but on LAUNCH DAY! There is no other console in history that has attempted this to my knowledge. So, you could get the best of both worlds, which beats all other portable competitors in terms of graphics. Even the nice, shiny PSP can't top next-gen consoles or even the current-gen ones! Only problem is that I don't know if it will be Revolution-compatible in portable mode. I hope it is...